I gotta say, I love the marketing around Valentine's Day. I really do. It's so whimsical and romantic and girly. And, for obvious reasons, I associate it with Kate Spade. Only 4 of these items are not Kate Spade! I wish I had all these pieces in my closet, but I do have the shoes and I am so in love. Can't wait to wear them for an upcoming V-Day blog post!

SHOP SIMILAR:Well, this is embarrassing. I believe this is my first real work outfit since last spring, when I was running the Work Style Wednesday linkup with Martha of Sun Fun Fashion. I was unable to keep it up because it's pretty much impossible to take blog photos during the week. I'd love to start it again, though. If I'm able to post work outfits more consistently I'll reinstate it. Because I really, really loved doing it!

Also, this was the scariest self-photography experience I've had thus far. I take many of my blog pictures myself, and while I've had some interesting experiences (like here or here), I've never had a lady try to steal my camera before! There I was, minding my own business in the middle of Coral Gables, just pressing my remote control as I posed and smiled into my tripod-sustained camera. When all of the sudden, a lady who looked like a student (wearing headphones and books) kept walking in my direction. This was in a pretty isolated place-- a private parking lot that was mostly empty. Looking back it was a mistake to set up here. I value privacy when I do this, for obvious reasons, but this was a little too deserted. Anyway, the lady came right into the parking lot and kept nonchalantly getting closer and closer to my tripod. She walked in a straight line, wasting no time. I instinctively started walking to my tripod and grabbed it, just pretending that I was gonna check on the pictures. I imagined all the ways I'd defend myself if she came any closer. And then she walked right past me, literally a foot or two away from me, and turned 180 degrees right next to me. She just did a semi-circle with me in the middle. Remember, this is a completely deserted parking lot of an empty building. There's no one there but me, just two cars way in the back away from me. There's absolutely no reason for her to walk in there, let alone straight in my direction. What astounded me the most was how normal she looked with her little books and earphones and sunglasses, and how nonchalant she was (not a word was uttered, not a glance was given) when she did that 180 right around me. So bizarre. And then she walked into the building across, which other seemingly-normal individuals were also going into. It was just so odd, I was stunned.

For sure I will be taking blog pictures in more public places from now on. I always try to aim for the perfect balance of public and secluded when I take my own pictures, but this day was different for some reason. Thankfully nothing happened to me or my camera. You better believe I ran straight into my car after that, camera still hooked on my tripod and everything!

He was from Israel, and you could tell. Very dark hair, green eyes, Middle Eastern accent. We Middle Easterners just know each other. Lol.

But actually, I did the whole 23andme DNA kit thing back when it was still $99 and it suggested I am 56% Iberian. I was surprised it only came back with 0.4% Middle Eastern and North African. I mean, look at my face. The man from Israel knew it and I know it that I am way more Arabic than that. The Iberian peninsula was ruled by the Moors for hundreds of years, but I'm pretty sure the haplogroups they base their estimates on are way older than that... Idk, I should look into it. My facial features and other physical traits definitely suggest I have more Arab in me than that.

Anyway, none of that has anything to do with my outfit. Lol. But I've had those results for a while now and the conversation with the Israelite that day plus these giant pictures of my face made me want to delve into ancestry talk. As for my outfit, it's mustard and burgundy and you get the picture. Classic fall color combo. Here in Miami we get to wear fall stuff in January sometimes. What can I say, we're a little late to the party. We run on Caribbean time. ;)

Where is your family from? How far do you think your genetic roots may reach? Comment below!

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Earnestyle uses affiliate product links in every post and some ads in the blog's sidebar. This means that if you click one of these links or an ad I will earn a very tiny commission. If you purchase an item I will earn a somewhat larger commission. All sponsored content included in the blog are for products or retailers that are featured in a post or for items that I would purchase myself. Items marked as "c/o" (courtesy of) were provided to me for free.